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Tuesday, May 9, 2017

TED Tuesday: Why So Serious?

As the old saying goes, "you can either soar like an eagle or flock like a duck." In this disarmingly simple presentation, we learn to differentiate clearly between the avians of the business world.

Good Morning,Today something different. Something funny. A satire of TED talks from The Onion.A friend recently posted 21 short videos worth more than an MBA, the 13 most inspirational videos of all time, and the 7 most motivational feature films of all time. Presenting Onion Talks: the most important ideas from greatest thinkers on the planet. No mind will be left unchangedHowever, to quote another great motivational speaker in a famous movie: "Why so serious?"Enough of the serious. The videos in this post are not worth an MBA and are neither inspirational nor motivational. But they're funny as all get out, IMHO.More than that, they illustrate some fairly important truths about human behavior and the realities of the business world.Enjoy any or all of my favorite three.1. Ducks and chickens.Amazing talk on cultural barriers. This minimalistic approach was very insightful and had an important message on how we should all get past our differences and communicate as the one true race that we are - the human race. Great job.﻿As the old saying goes, "you can either soar like an eagle or flock like a duck." In this disarmingly simple presentation, we learn to differentiate clearly between the avians of the business world. The duck says quack, while some animals on the farm take quite a different approach. Award-winning animal behaviorist Peter Garcia discusses these contrasting philosophies, and how we can reconcile them for a brighter future. VIEW HERE2. The power of social media.The world's most successful companies know that social media is a powerful marketing tool, and Cameron Hughes knows how to make social marketing even more effective: by never injecting an ounce of effort into it. No technology has ever had a bigger effect on our business culture than social media. In this groundbreaking presentation, we learn of the true power of social media to increase a company's value proposition.VIEW HERE3. The value of patience.In our fast paced world, we expect everything at once. But Peter Redd says there is merit to waiting for desirable outcomes-- like savoring a delicious homemade pie. A perfect metaphor for a perfect talk.In a world where everything moves so quickly, it's essential to cultivate the value of patience. Science shows that attentions spans are growing shorter each year and the ability to delay gratification is a strong indicator of life success.VIEW HEREWere it not for the conspicuous green logo propped up behind him, one might be excused for failing to realize that this is not, as it seems, a ted Talk, but rather, one of the first in a series that premières today called, “Onion Talks.” A year ago, YouTube announced a list of winning proposals for “YouTube Original Channels,” to expand the platform’s content; among them were ones submitted both by the Onion and ted. Sam West, the head writer of the Onion Talks series, imagined it would be just like ted, “only instead of a good idea, it will be a ludicrous one.” At first, he said, “We actually reached out to ted to see if they were interested in collaborating with us. But when they saw what we were up to, they didn’t really think it was an idea worth spreading.”“Ideas worth spreading” is the tagline of ted Talks; for Onion Talks, it’s “No mind will be left unchanged.” During a popular ted Talk from last March, the author Susan Cain discussed the merits of being quiet, saying, “Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, Gandhi—all these people described themselves as quiet and soft-spoken and even shy;” in an Onion Talk, a lecturer offers, “Did you know that this generation will be ten times louder than their grandparents? If George Washington were alive today, we would not be able to see or hear him.” From Cain’s ted Talk: “At the risk of sounding grandiose, it is the world’s loss, because when it comes to creativity and to leadership we need introverts doing what they do best.” As West and I discussed the irksome self-importance of these lectures, he stopped himself, and said, “I’m sounding all grandiose here.”Ted has inspired an idea worth spreading, after all, which is that comedy emerges from people taking themselves too seriously. Nathan Heller, in his profile of the program for the magazine this summer, characterized the ted Talk personality like this:People frequently say that ted has a low irony quotient. Actually there is plenty of irony at TED; what’s missing is a particular kind of irony, the underdog kind… . It is the mood of professionals who wear Converse to work, own multimillion-dollar homes at thirty-two, eat local, donate profits to charity, learn Mandarin, and rock-climb in the Pinnacles on Sundays. It is the friendly, self-effacing irony of winners. There is a joke around the ted offices which distills this West Coast irony for me. It goes, “Oh, so you’ve lost your legs and climbed Everest? So did everyone else.” Continued on The New Yorker...And you can view the whole series HERE.

Have a GREAT day,

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer

...........................................“Nothing will work unless you do." ~~ Maya Angelou............................................

Ideas are not set in stone. When exposed to thoughtful people, they morph and adapt into their most potent form. TED Tuesdays on MitchWeiner.com highlights some of today's most intriguing ideas. Look for more talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design -- plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more— HERE.

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